Daily Mail

Daughter saw father die in front of her after van attack

- By Tom Kelly, Emine Sinmaz and Christian Gysin

A WOMAN who rushed to the scene of the mosque attack saw her father die.

The 26-year-old arrived as her father Makram Ali, who had collapsed in the road before the attack, was being treated by friends and locals.

Mr Ali, 51, had been walking home from the Muslim Welfare House when he became ill – before the van ploughed into the crowd, injuring ten and leaving the pavement ‘painted red’ in blood.

Relatives alerted his daughter, who ran from their nearby home to help, only to witness his tragic last moments. The woman, who has not been named, later said: ‘When I saw him he was conscious and breathing but then he died.’

Mr Ali had had a pacemaker fitted two years ago and used walking sticks, neighbours said. One, who did not want to be named, said: ‘His daughter told me it ran over his leg. She said the family are very upset by what’s happened.’ Eight of the injured needed hospital treatment, including grandmothe­r Hirsiyo Ali, 2, who is not related to Mr Ali. She suffered broken ribs as the van hit her as she walked home from the mosque. Her granddaugh­ter Najma Ahmed, 16, said their family had been left heartbroke­n and in shock.

The schoolgirl added: ‘I visited my grandmothe­r in hospital today and she looked very injured and she couldn’t open her eyes.’

A disabled man suffered a gash to his head but escaped with his life after being pushed partly out of the way of the van by his deaf friend.

‘The deaf man has lived around here for years and was very brave,’ said a witness, who gave his name as Athmane.

‘I could see him trying to push the man in the wheelchair away from the oncoming van but the vehicle still hit the man in the chair and he was badly injured.

‘Before the van hit anyone I heard tyres screaming and then I saw the van going very fast. The driver knew exactly what he was doing. He knew he was targeting people who had come from the mosque after saying prayers.’

Another man suffered broken legs, a broken arm and injuries to his chest and is in a coma, a relative said. His cousin, named Felin, told LBC the van ‘came out of nowhere’.

A man called Mohin said his cousin was also injured in the attack. The 32-year-old said: ‘I was in hysterics. I went through [the police cordon] and I saw bodies all over the floor. There were teenagers. I have never seen that much blood in my life, the road was painted red.’

 ??  ?? Broken ribs: Hirsiyo Ali, 72, in the pink veil
Broken ribs: Hirsiyo Ali, 72, in the pink veil

Newspapers in English

Newspapers from United Kingdom